The Swing Cats Spring Jam has been cancelled due to a miscommunication with the Athletic Department about the use of Moody Coliseum for the event.

In celebration of the new dance policy, the Swing Cats intended to host a campus-wide event offering free swing dance lessons followed by a dance with a live performance by the ACU Jazz Band.

The Swing Cats organization booked Moody Coliseum months in advance, but there was a delay in the event details being properly organized.

The dance was cancelled due to a concern that the shoes required for swing dancing would ruin the gym floors. Moody facilitators notified the Swing Cats earlier last week that they would only allow the event if the participants wore socks or if the floor was completely papered.

Cole Bennett, Swing Cats sponsor and Chair of the English Department, attempted to find another location for the dance, but due to expense and time, could not find another location.

“No one person is at fault here,” Bennett said. “Facilities personnel notified me last week that they would not allow a dance to happen on the gym floor unless participants wore socks, or unless the floor was papered – a procedure that inhibits dancing and is very expensive.”

Last fall, the Windsor Hotel facilitated the “Swing Cats Fall Stomp”, a public event with live music in the hotel’s ballroom. The event brought participants from all over Abilene and even Dallas, encouraging the Swing Cats to make the dance a yearly off-campus event.

Bennett feels that the function of the facilities should be communicated more clearly especially under the new dance policy.

“ACU has lifted the ban on dancing, but we have not thought through the facilities part of the equation,” Bennett said. “The Swing Cats certainly don’t wish to damage any gym floors, but we did not anticipate any difficulties since we’re a student athletic group wanting to use a student athletic facility.”